Thousands of Egyptians protested on Tuesday outside of the parliament building in downtown Cairo to demand the assembly's immediate dissolution.
The nearly 4000 protesters, who are also demanding the resignation of embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, chanted slogans such as, "This parliament is void," "Down with fraud,"and "Dissolve Ezz’s council," the latter in reference to Ahmed Ezz, business tycoon and the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP)'s dismissed secretary of organizational affairs.
Ezz is believed to have funded the NDP's electoral campaigns in parliamentary polls–widely seen as fraudulent–held late last year.
One outspoken protester called on fellow demonstrators heading to nearby Tahrir Square–the site of an ongoing million-man protest–to join in the demonstration outside of parliament. Protesters raised banners reading, “It's time for reform."
Members of the armed forces were able to keep protesters away from the parliament building’s main gate, calling on parliamentary employees to keep their distance so as not to provoke the demonstrators.
